Jury Finds Tom Noe Guilty

[Roland99]

http://www.wtol.com/Global/story.asp?S=5644300

Tom Noe, 52, has been found guilty of theft, money laundering, forgery and corrupt activity. Noe had walked into the courthouse holding hands with his wife, Bernadette.

The jury -- composed of eight women and four men -- reached its verdict Nov. 13. Of those 12 jurors, two are African-American, one is Hispanic and nine are Caucasian. Closing arguments had taken place Nov. 7. At that time, lawyers for Noe, a Republican fundraiser charged with stealing from a $50 million state investment, made one last pitch to jurors in his case. The jury then deliberated Wednesday, Thursday and Monday, taking Friday off for the Veterans Day holiday.

Evidence left no doubt that Noe was a swindler, a prosecutor said at the end of a trial that hurt Republicans in the election Nov. 7. Noe, a one-time prominent GOP fundraiser, began stealing state money the moment the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation gave him an initial $25 million dollars that he was supposed to invest in rare coins, Lucas County Assistant Prosecutor John Weglian said in his closing argument.

The scandal has been an embarrassment for Ohio's ruling Republicans, and the trial put a spotlight on their troubles in the weeks leading up to the election. Democrats had been poised to take back the governor's office for the first time since 1990 -- and they did that, and more.

[DemReadingDU]

1. WooHoo, good news!

I'm from Ohio.

:woohoo:

[ThomCat]

2. Jail time, baby!

One more down. :7

[tblue]

3. What a pitiful buncha no account con men. Hey, Noe! Don't drop the soap!

[mod mom]

4. Link to Toledo Blade which gives witness testimony on each day:

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061113/BREAKINGNEWS/311130003

[rfranklin]

5. Wasn't that money funneled into the Republican coffers as well?

I seem to remember some reporting about him financing their campaigns with that stolen money.

[Roland99]

6. I seem to recall that, too.

[newscott]

7. The whole joke about this case is they are saying he stole most of it

for his own gain. I'm thinking George Bush spent a lot of that money on his campaigns. We'll never know.

[LiberalHeart]

9. No, different case (see my other post)

[LiberalHeart]

8. That was the federal case -- Bush/Cheney campaign fund-raising

He funneled about 45 grand into the Bush/Cheney campaign via conduits. He got 27 months in federal prison for that, but didn't start serving that sentence today because of his state trial. Now we are awaiting the sentence on the convictions today (that'll be weeks). He could get a lot of years for these state charges, but must serve the federal sentence first.

I've met Noe. This is quite a comedown from his rather lofty perch.

[OnyxCollie]

40. He was a Bush Pioneer. Read: criminal. nt

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

10. Noe! Please say it isn't so!

Noe!
Noe!
Noe!




Oh, Noe!

[Judi Lynn]

41. Wonderful photo choices! Perfection itself. Woohoooooooo.

[LiberalHeart]

11. BREAKING NEWS -- Jurors Reach Verdict in COINGATE Case

The verdict will be read soon and you can watch it via live streaming at:

http://wtol.com

There's a link to the live stream at the top of the page. It's now 3:37 and local news is saying everyone's gathering at the courthouse now. Should be very soon. This is the Tom Noe trial in Ohio.

[peacebird]

12. Please post updates! I can't watch live streams - not enough bandwidth....

thanks!

:hi:

[LiberalHeart]

13. Will do.

[napi21]

14. CNN should have this live too, I would think. n/t

[LiberalHeart]

15. I doubt that.

[lisa58]

16. I've got cnn on now...

...will let you know if they have anything.

[Gregorian]

17. Weee! CNN is doing Celebrity Meltdowns.

I don't watch tv too often.

How far we've sunk as a nation. Wow. I probably won't be turning on CNN in the next twenty years. That was sad. And especially with so much real news that isn't being run. Darfur, perhaps?

[annabanana]

18. wtol is starting coverage now

with a breif recap of the case

[annabanana]

19. It seems that

there are 44 counts... this may take awhile

[annabanana]

20. count 1 - guilty

[annabanana]

21. count 2 guilty

[annabanana]

22. 3 &5 not guilty

7 yes
9 no
11 no
13 yes
15 not g
17 yes
19 not g
20 guilty
22 guilty
23 not
24 yes
25 guilty
26 guilty
27 not
28 not
29 not
30 guilty
31 not
32 guilty forgery
33 guilty forgery
34 guilty "
35 guilty "
36 "
37"
38"
39 "
40 "
41 "
42 "
43 "
44 "
45 "
46 "
48 "
49 "
52 "
they are about to start polling the jury

[LiberalHeart]

25. Thanks for that list ... I couldn't keep up

[texpatriot2004]

27. That's like what, 29 guilty and the rest not? nm

[annabanana]

23. Sounds to me like he pretty much got skonked. . n/t

[Marie26]

28. Good.

Maybe he & Ney can share a prison cell.

[annabanana]

24. jury excused. . .n/t

[LiberalHeart]

26. Taken away in cuffs

[slampoet]

29. CNN gets scooped by LOCAL TOLEDO news

I saw this on wtol and here it is 20 minutes later and no word of any sort on CNN. But CNN did decide to carry a story about a fakepowder attack in Cincinatti.

CNN!!! clean out your desks you hacks!!

[napi21]

30. Found guilty of th following charges.

2 counts corruption
18 counts oforgery
4 counts tampering
4 counts money laundering
2 counts aggrivate theft

A guilty on 30 counts in total.

Not guilty on 14 counts.

[Gregorian]

31. Wow. I wonder how many years that'll get him.

It just keeps getting better every day around here!

[napi21]

34. The local station had a legal consultant on. He said the judge

will most likely request a pre-sentencing investigation, and hold the sentencing hearing within 6 weeks. Noe will first have to serve his Federal sentence, and then have to serve whatever sentence after that!

He wouldn't speculate on the length of the State sentence because there were just too many considerations. I don't recall whichcount he spoke about, but one of them carries 3 to 10 years, and of course Noe's lawyers will request that allsentences be served concurrently. I guess we'll just have to wait and see. It doesn't sound like Noe is going to be doing much partying for a long time though.

[LiberalHeart]

35. The theft charge is the biggie...

...it involves over a million bucks.

I wonder why it would take so long for a pre-sentence investigation. He already had one for his federal charges in the Bush/Cheney illegal fund-raising charges, didn't he? That federal sentence is 27 months long.

[xxqqqzme]

36. to use the latest word contributed

by those who shall not be named -noe is so screwned!

[DemReadingDU]

32. WooHoo, good news!

:woohoo:

[LiberalHeart]

33. Press conference coming up ...

I think the http://wtol.com link is also carrying that live ... and I think it'll be conferences from both sides.

[Tempest]

37. Blackwell's next

And he can't hide behind his office anymore.

[Hand]

38. ...

[truthisfreedom]

39. they pushed it back to make the verdict happen after the elections, but now

it just further demoralizes an already shattered, frightened bunch of corrupt politicians, all waiting for the FBI to come knocking.

[Judi Lynn]

42. You know, this verdict is great, but why was it withheld until after the ELECTION?

Surely it wasn't a political decision, was it?

[mtnester]

43. Fabulous, on the very DAY I received my new HIGHER Workers Comp rates

thanks alot Tom...may you rot in hell.

Fucker...next - Ney...and when he finally leaves office, Taft, and that shithead Betty Montgomery...ALL responsible for the appalling permission to steal or ignorant lack of oversight...which I doubt it is THAT reason.

Any single person who received a campaign donation from Tom Noe ought to pay back the small business owners of Ohio for EVERY dime....cause that is where is was STOLEN from.

[Anakin Skywalker]

44. "Investing in rare coins"? WTF? People actually believed that?

[ContinentalOp]

45. Strange

Why on earth would a state give $25 million to an individual to "invest" in rare coins anyway? Isn't that fishy in and of itself?

[Anakin Skywalker]

46. Some of these people must've been truly stupid or corrupt.

[Judi Lynn]

47. And he just HAPPENED to own a rare coin shop, himself.

The casual onlooker would have to say it sounds like a recipe for mischief!

[ToeBot]

48. So now will he resign? Or will they be forced to kick his criminal ass out? nt

[liberal N proud]

49. Yeah! but then found Kenny boy Lay guilty too

[Judi Lynn]

50. Washington Post: Ohio Jury Convicts Ex-GOP Fundraiser

Ohio Jury Convicts Ex-GOP Fundraiser

By Peter Slevin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, November 14, 2006; Page A03

CHICAGO, Nov. 13 -- A federal jury in Toledo concluded Monday that former Republican fundraiser and coin dealer Tom Noe swindled the Ohio government in a risky investment scheme that raised doubts about GOP leadership and contributed to last week's virtual Democratic sweep of statewide offices.

Jurors convicted Noe, 52, a former county chairman who helped raise more than $100,000 in 2004 for the Bush-Cheney ticket, of 29 of 40 counts, including theft, corruption and forgery. He faces at least 10 years in prison for stealing from the state workers' compensation fund and trying to hide his actions.

Noe's trial, with its vivid testimony of lined pockets and bogus transactions, made headlines in the three weeks before Election Day. The details -- starting with the very idea of investing $50 million in rare coins -- provided fodder for Democratic advertisements and voter angst.

The damage to the chances of Republicans, who held every statewide office before last week's vote cost them a seat in the U.S. Senate, as well as the governor's chair, was significant even before the 12 jurors and four alternates took their seats in the courtroom.
(snip/...)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/13/AR2006111301305.html

[DFW]

51. "Investing in rare coins"? WTF? People actually believed that?"

I sure did. Still do. I'll swear to it right here in front of the assembled DU. What's ironic about all this is that $50 million invested in the right kind of rare coins between 1998 and 2002 would be worth about double to triple that right now. The rare coin market is really hot, and the idea was a sound one. I've been interested in coins since I was a kid. I put away a rare silver dollar (that I believed was a great investment) when I was a 21 year old college student. I paid $1,600 for it. I sold it two years ago for well over $100,000. Believe me, it's no fantasy, and no scam. You just gotta know what the hell you're doing.

I knew Noe pretty well back in the 1970s, and he had a decent eye for the right kind of coins to invest in, too. I had no idea about his political activities in the meantime, but I'm not surprised. He was always sort of a grandstander and a wannabe, and it looks like it got the better of him in a big way. I also know a few of the other coin dealers he lent money to on good faith, and a couple of them I wouldn't trust with a dime, and would not turn my back on in any situation--real sleazes devoid of any kind a conscience whatsoever (rather like Noe's choice of political parties and presidents). If Noe had waited to collect his commission on profits earned for the State of Ohio instead of being in such a damned hurry to cash in, as well as not making loans to guys he should have known were bad news (as everyone else in the coin business could/should have told him, and probably did), he would now be a legitimate multimillionaire earning the praise of Ohio's workers for whom he had done so well.

The same goes for his illegal campaign contributions. If he had just done his best and been content with not being a ranger, or pioneer, or whatever the hell they called it, he would have gotten his due thanks from the Republican Party, end of story. Instead, that wasn't enough. He wanted to be seen with Bush, and get calls from Rove, and have Rove's office on his rolodex. Unlike Bush or Rove, I don't think Tom Noe set out to be an evil character. I think he just got swept up in the right wing heat, and figured in the atmosphere of 2001-2004 that just being a Bush Republican was enough to insulate him from any excesses he might committed along the way, and that all would work out OK in the end.

It looks like he'll now have about twelve years to figure out why he misjudged the situation.